I've had this camera for a year & 2 months. I've taken thousands of photos with it. This is one of 2 digital compact cameras I own. I've been gushing to write a review for some months now. I love this camera for the following reasons: (a) Solid build - all metal body except for plastic compartment doors, which in my opinion are not flimsy (b) Small & handy to carry around & go about anywhere, but with a big 5MP resolution & 5x optical zoom capability (c) Controls are very logically placed, ...

I purchased this camera in December 03. As a professional nature photographer I bought it as a back up to my SLR's and for doing preview shots prior to taking the proper pictures. It is solidly built, has an excellent array of features, great battery life, easy to use and possesses a nice optical zoom. Landscape and portrait pictures are good as are standard macros. Problems: I think it falls down where the ultra closeup supermacro (digital) facility is concerned. A tripod and remote control ...

I have owned this camera for one year and run through a full year of pictures, attempting to take anything and everything I could and have to say that this camera is outstanding. Construction and styling is very good Features are plentiful and easy to use Battery life is tremendous Zoom is excellent Size is small enough to fit in a pocket, and smaller than other similar cameras. Most importantly, the pictures come out very good to excellent most of the time. I have had some bad shots, or ...

This is a great little camera, provided you don't have quality control problems. It has virtually every feature you could want in a digital camera except IR assist light and a flash hot shoe. Takes excellent photos, although probably a tiny bit grainier than I've seen from a Canon G3. I bought mine new/used from a large frame art-photo buff who wanted to see what the digital craze is all about and after taking 100 or so photos, decided he didn't like the quality of pictures this Pentax ...

Despite what other seem to be saying, I don't think the camera is terribly ugly--at least I have definitely seen uglier. Anway, I bought this camera about a month ago and I am very happy with it. Although I wish it were a little smaller, perhaps closer in size to the canon s500 or sony p100, the 5X zoom definitely makes up for it. The pictures I have taken in Macro are unbeatable compared with my friends cameras in the same class. The potential for creative photography and manual control ...

When my old camera broke down i spent almost 5 months searching for the next one. I really wanted that "Super camera". After alot of searching I picked the Optio 555. Almost one year later I know that there is no such thing as a super camera but The 555 comes pretty close. I''m VERY satisfied with it though there're some details I dislike. Good stuff: * All manual features you can find in digital system cameras except for the extreme ranges in aperture and shutter speed. I can really do ...

This is my third Digital Camera (RDC, Minolta F-100). The fact that the zoom range is 5x is amazing. Picture noise is more noticable than the F100 at 400ISO setting but the 5megapixel CCD makes up for it. Battery life is amazing. I considered a few cameras in the 4.0+ Megapixel range with cosideration for the following needs: compactness, manual settings, image quality, optical zoom range & price (under $700.00 Canadian). After comparing shots taken from a few cameras, I chose the Optio. ...

Brought Pentax Optio 555 from Beach Camera (online). I compared with Canon S60, S500, Casio Exilim and Nikon Coolpix 5200, and spent almost 3 months searching for the right camera. I have a Canon elan IIe (film) camera for 5 years and am happy with it, but decided to go digital to cut cost (print only the pictures that comes out nice). Pentax was finalised due to the $50 rebate and the amazing specifications of the camera. The camera was as stated in the specification and met my ...

If you are an advanced amateur who wants full manual control and 2 cm close focusing or 5x zoom in as small a package as possible, you can't beat the 555. Battery life is amazing. A camera you can carry in your pocket all the time. Problems: Focus in low light can cause long shutter lag, but pre-focus using shutter button solves the problem. Low light pictures noisier than some other cameras, but when printed at sizes up to 8x10 noise is not noticeable.